Song to Bergslagen

The hidden boundaries of the Bergslagen region, which spans multiple provinces of central Sweden, are defined by the presence of iron ore beneath its surface. The passage of the seasons forms a framework for views of the past, present, and future of this densely forested area, subtly underlining the changes that are now occurring. Many of the mines have closed down, but the traditions of yesteryear still remain.

Almost entirely without words, the film sketches portraits of present and past inhabitants; of the workers at the iron foundry and an elderly woman with parchment skin nodding off in a rocking chair. These poetic capsules of time are captured at times in grainy black-and-white and sometimes in richly saturated color.

Scenes showing a language class for immigrants and children at school cast a glance at the new people who will populate and shape Bergslagen in the coming years. Just as nature adapts to the seasons, so Bergslagen moves with the changing times.